A wide variety of devices for holding objects on a wall or other flat surface have been available. Many of these holders have one or more suction cups to which a basket, tray, ring, hook or similar structure is attached. For example U.S. Pat. No. 5,078,356 discloses a suction cup having an offset-mounted hook. In this device the suction cup has a cup-shaped base and cylindrical neck with a transverse circular bore. A hook has a straight cylindrical top which passes through the bore. A flat head on the top portion retains the hook in the neck of the suction cup. Because the bore and the top portion of the hook are cylindrical the hook is free to rotate within the bore. Another suction cup holder is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. Des. 408,725. The suction cup in that holder has a cup-shaped base and a loop attached to the base. A hook is fitted through the loop. Yet another type of suction cup holder is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 1,859,893. The suction cup in that holder has a cylindrical bore through which a cylindrical rod passes. The ends of a U-shaped bail are attached to the ends of the rod. This type of configuration has also been used for towel holders in which a ring having a circular cross section passes through a cylindrical bore in the neck of the suction cup. In all of these holders the supporting ring or hook is made of metal or a plastic which is harder than the neck of the suction cup which typically is vinyl. In the holder which has a ring passing through the suction cup the ring can be positioned so that the ring lies in a plane that is perpendicular to the wall on which the suction cup is mounted. If a towel is hung on the ring the ring will not remain in that plane but will be deflected downward.
Injector razors have a long handle and a generally rectangular head mounted at on end of the handle such that the head is transverse to the handle. Consequently, that razor can easily be held in a holder of the type having a ring passing through a cylindrical bore in the neck of the suction cup. However, when I made such a holder I discovered that the ring did not remain in a plane perpendicular to the wall on which the holder was mounted. Instead, the weight of the razor deflected the ring downward until the lower end of the razor rested against the wall. This made it difficult to remove the razor from the holder.
Another type of suction cup holder has a U-shaped holding portion that is permanently attached to one or more suction cups in a manner that it will not move from a plane perpendicular to the wall on which the holder was mounted. Such a holder is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,502,714. This type of suction cup requires a larger package than the suction cup with a ring that can be moved from a position in a plane perpendicular to the wall on which the holder was mounted to a plane parallel to that wall.
There is a need for a razor holder of the type having a suction cup with a ring wherein the ring can be positioned in a plane parallel to a wall on which the suction cup will be mounted for shipment and then the ring can be moved to and remain in a plane perpendicular to that wall while holding a razor.